“You sound more like a pundit or critic than a reformer.”
That stung.
It was feedback on my last newsletter from a dear friend I met 30 years ago when we worked at a university together. He asked, “What’s your solution?”
Other friends that work in higher education see some of what I write, and it likely sounds like just another gaping mouth from the complaint chorus.
When I was a Regent for 12 years at the University of Colorado, I tuned out most critics —sometimes well-meaning, occasionally accurate, usually lacking nuance—because most times I couldn’t do anything about their issue even though people thought I had all this power.
After a while, constant complaints are not interesting. Saying some version of “you suck” was not helping me do my job better.
Another reaction was to defend higher education externally—as a Regent, I think that’s a legitimate part of the job—because I love colleges and universities. The teaching, research, and medical care they provide are critical to our society, and they need and deserve our support.
I would save my thoughts about what we could do better—like any large organization, it was a list—for an internal audience.
For practitioners, pointing out what is true at the macro, policy, or cultural level doesn’t help them solve campus, college, or department issues. If you are dealing with today’s problem, you don’t care about trying to boil the ocean. You want to fix what is in front of you.
In my Regent’s Roundtable podcast, I talk to higher education experts about issues university trustees face so they can have more context to do their job. It is designed to be informative, not a critique. But that’s not this.
So, why am I doing this this newsletter if it annoys people I love and often says what can be found in the Chronicle of Higher Education, Inside Higher Education, editorial pages, volumes of papers from think tanks and policy organizations, or in mountains of books by current or former professors, deans, and presidents?
University of San Diego Library, Image by Stephen Ludwig
My Story, My Driver
The fact is my heart is broken.
My college experience was profound and transformational. It was so meaningful to me that I want as many people as possible—with the talent and desire—to have access to that life-changing education.
I am a higher education evangelist.
But I see higher education in general, even my alma matter, drifting further away from a focus on service to others to a focus on self.
The unspoken message from the higher education sector—regardless of what Web sites or brochures say— to that kid that barely graduated high school but got a second chance through two community colleges and a great regional university is something other than “welcome” and “we have a place for you.”
That kills me.
It is my hope, perhaps naïve, that by clearly articulating our shared problems and highlighting where we deviate from our stated values, we can start a conversation to begin to address them as a community inside and outside of higher education.
Then again, I could be screaming at the wind.
Helpful Questions
In my later years as a Regent, after a lot of therapy and good medication, I found a question that would help determine if and how to move forward with something. “What’s running the show today, my ego or my commitments?”
Let’s be honest. We are complex people. It is never all one or the other—it’s a mix. But, in asking, I was usually pretty sure which was which. If my ego was sailing the ship, I could pause and reflect on what was happening.
Providing counsel about institution-level challenges needs to be contextual. So, there is no “solution” I can offer when it comes to what people deal with day to day.
However, I can share what I find useful. The following three questions can provide guidance when looking at an issue:
1. “Is this decision allowing us to lower/control costs, improve student outcomes or experience, or serve the public better?” The answer can’t always be yes, but it’s a good check-in.
2. “If we were doing this from a blank slate today, what would it look like?” Institutions can’t start from scratch, but the question can provide new insight into what might be possible or what direction you might want to take.
3. I invite you to use my question, “What’s running the show today? Is it your values and your commitments, or is something else creeping in?” It’s not a fun question, but it is helpful when things get muddled with personality conflicts. And, let’s be honest here, a lot of work is dealing with personality conflicts.
For those in higher education, I truly hope those questions are helpful for you. For those of you in other sectors, you can change some of the context, and they work just as well.
Good article. Creating a welcoming and supportive environment in higher education needs to be a first priority. Challenging students to excel and succeed is also vital. Being an economic engine and creating new knowledge is also important. Thanks for the work